Portable dispenser for sheets



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F. L. BROEREN PORTABLE DISPENSER FOR SHEETS Filed April l2, 1955 Jan. 14, 1936. l

Patented J an. 14,

PORTABLE DISPENSER FOR SHEETS Frank L. Broeren, Menasha, Wis., assigner to Marathon Paper Mills Company, Rothschild, Wis., a corporation of Wisconsin Application April 12,

1 Claim.

The dispenser of the present invention is designed primarily for use by the attendants of o-il filling stations or garages who are constantly re quired to wipe away oil which has accumulated on the engine of a car, or oil which has been spilled or spattered during the filling of the oil reservoir, or in similar circumstances where wiping or cleaning is required. Ordinarily oil thus spilled or accumulated is wiped away by any scrap of fabric or waste material which may be available and which very quickly becomes foul and saturated with oil and unfit for use under conditions where cleanliness and neatness in appearance are desired or appreciated.

f Furthermore, where a foul and soiled rag is employed, it is impossible for the attendant to judge the condition of the oil by its color, which is highly desirable as an indication of the need for draining the crank case and replenishing with a clean supply of oil.

The dispenser of the present invention is preferably constructed in such a manner that it may be easily and conveniently fastened around the waist of the attendant so that it will always be in position to extract therefrom a fresh absorbent paper sheet with which to wipe away the surplus oil, which will thus immediately register its color on the sheet and enable the attendant to readily ascertain the condition of the oil.

Furthermore, b-y stacking fresh sheets in compact form within a relatively small container, and by dispensing with the used sheets in a waste can or container, the premises will be maintained in a neat and sightly appearance, and the use of foul rags and waste can The present invention and construction of the be duly dispensed with. is directed to the form container itself to the convenient arrangement of the slot through which the sheets are withdrawn; to the construction and mounting for the follower plate,

and to the general arrangement of the device as a whole.

Further objects and details will appear from a description ofthe invention in conjunction Figure l is a with the accompanying drawing, wherein,-

perspective View of the container;

Fig. 2 -is a vertical sectional elevation taken on line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional elevation taken 50 on line 3 of Fig. 2;

-Fig. 4 is a plan View of the casing showing a modified form of construction; and

Fig. 5 is a rear face View of the casing of Fig. 4. The dispenser comprises a container consisting 55 of a front section I0 and a rear section I I hinged 1935, Serial N0. 16,010

(Cl. S12- 62) thereto in a manner to be presently described. p The front section is preferably integrally formed to provide a front panel I2, a base or end walls M, and a bottom I3,

top I5. The construction in general is that of a box standing on edge and open toward the rear.

The front panel is provided with a horizontally extending slot I6 which extends from side to side of the front panel along a lineslightly below the horizontal center. The metal contiguous to the slot is offset in such a manner as to` afford a forwardly projecting upper lip I'I and a rearwardly projecting lower lip I8, thus bringing the slot into an oblique plane with reference to the general plane of the front panel.

IThe upper lip I'I constitutes the lower terminus of a forwardly protruded pocket having an obliquely disposed front wall I9 terminating in triangular end walls which merge into the flat face of the front panel near the ends thereof. The lower lip I8 constitutes the upper terminus of an inwardly oset portion having an oblique inwardly projecting front wall 2I which merges at its ends 22 into the planate surface of the panel. The ends 23 of the slot round outwardly and upwardly from the inwardly offset plane of the lower lip- I8 to the outwardly offset plane of the upper lip Il',

which is provided with a bead 24 to afford a smooth edge nish for the withdrawal of the sheets.

The lips Il and IB extend in parallel offset relation to one another throughout the entire length of the slot and up to the rounded ends thereof, and the relation of the lips to one another is such as to permit the free tab portion 25 of the outermost folded sheet to spring outwardly through the slot and below the upper lip thereof in position to permit the attendant to easily grasp the free tab for withdrawal of the sheet from the stack, as vindicated in Fig. 2.

The lower lip IB affords a stop or abutment for contact with the outermost sheet for holding back the lower portion of the stack while the upper portion thereof is advanced forwardly into the pocket portion posed wall I9.

The front section with the rear section II, walls 26 which overlap afforded by the obliquely dis- Ill of the container cooperates which comprises end the margins of the end walls of the front section, and a base or bottom 21 and a top 28, which likewise overlap the contiguous marginal portions of the front section. The rear section preferably has a back wall 29 of inwardly bowed or concave configuration to fit snugly and firmly around the body of the attendant, and the base 2l and the top wall 28 are curved accordingly.

As shown, the rear wall near its upper edge is provided with pivoted eyes 23a near the upper corners for the reception of a strap or tape 30 for securing the dispenser to the body of the attendant near the waist line. 'Ihe parts are secured together by a hinge connection 3l between the base walls of the two sections, and the sections are held in close relation by means of a snap catch which as shown is afforded by a rivet 32 adapted to snap into a perforation 33.

The stack of folded sheets is advanced toward the front panel by a follower plate 34 which is held by a floating connection comprising links 35-35 each of which is provided near its outer end with ears 36 which are pivoted upon a pintle 31 carried by ears 39 struck out from a bowed plate 39 secured to the curving rear wall and provided with end flanges 4S bearing against the end walls of the rear section.

The links 35 extend in oblique convergent relation to one another, and each link is provided at its end with upwardly and downwardly extending lingers 4| and 42 which ride 'within slots 43 in guide flanges 44 struck out from the follower plate 34. Each link is acted upon by a coil spring 45 which tends to swing the link outwardly, with the result that the follower plate will float upon the mounting thus alforded by the links, and maintain itself in properly adjusted relation to the stack, so as to afford a uniform fo-rward pressure tending to feed the stack forwardly toward the discharge slot. The upper and lower marginal edges 4S of the follower plate are ybent rearwardly to prevent contact of the raw edges with the stack.

Fig. 4 shows a modied form in which the rear section of the container is of truly rectangular form, being provided with a flat rear wall 4l in lieu of the concave wall previously described, but in other respects the dispenser is substantially the same as that previously described.

In use, with the dispenser strapped to the Waist of the attendant, which is the preferred arrangement, the slot 23 will present itself at a convenient level to permit of the easy withdrawal of the sheets singly as occasion may require. The outermost sheet will be freed by the conguration of the pocket from the remainder ofthe stack, and will present itself through the slot so that it may be conveniently withdrawn. Furthermore, the forwardly sloping surface of the front pocket wall i) affords an eective protection against the ingress oi moisture in rainy weather and serves at all times to adequately protect the sheets.

The olset arrangement of the lips affording the upper and lower margins of the slot has the elect of compressing and holding back the lower portion of the stack, which is of less ply thickness than the upper portion which includes the free tabs, thus compensating for the difference in thickness of the upper and lower portions of the stack and permitting the outermost tab` in 5 each case to spring forward through the slot for easy release.

The device as a whole is neat and attractive in appearance and of such reduced size that it may be easily and conveniently worn by the attendant without impeding freedom of movement, or in any way interfering with the performance of other duties.

Although the device is intended primarily to be worn upon the body of the attendant, it may if desired be hung or mounted upon any conveniently located support, and in such circumstances it is 'not necessary to provide the curving rear Wall, but the flat wall of Fig. 4 may be employed, and provided with bayonet slots 43 or the like 20 adapted to receive the heads of xedly positioned bolts 49.

Although it is particularly desirable to make use of the sheets for the purpose of wiping away oil, it will be found convenient and desirable to use the sheets for other purposes, such for instance as wiping off dust or spots on a wind shield or for the removal of dirt or other foreign matter from the hands of customers, or in fact for any purpose for which rags or waste are commonly used in and about a lling station or other establishment where it is desired to provide facilities for maintaining the premises and the person of the attendant in a neat, sanitary and cleanly condition.

Although the invention has been described in full detail, it is not the intention, unless otherwise indicated in the claim, to limit the invention to the construction shown, since modifications may be made therein without departing 4,0 from the spirit of the invention.

I claim:

In a portable dispenser of the class described, the combination of a container for sheets having a discharge slot in one of its walls, a follower plate positioned to bear against a stack of sheets to advance the same toward the discharge slot, a pair of link members pivoted at their outer ends to the rear portion of the container, said rear portion being curved so as to t the body contour of a wearer, said link members extending inwardly obliquely in convergent relation to one another, slotted guide members on the follower plate slidably engaging the free ends of the link members, and springs bearing against the link members for swinging the free ends forwardly to advance the follower plate, the follower plate being held by the links in suspended relation to the walls of the container.

FRANK L. BROEREN. 

